The World's Greatest Catastrophe

The sights and sounds of earthquakes and tsunamis and nuclear meltdowns in Japan make us uneasy. We know natural disasters can happen in the U.S. They already have. We just don't know what's next or when it will occur.

But I believe the world's greatest catastrophe already happened thousands of years ago.

It happened quietly. In a peaceful garden, amid birds chirping, streams burbling, and leaves rustling in the breeze. The woman, perfect in beauty, form, and intellect, fondled the forbidden fruit, then ate it.

The choice she made couldn't be undone. The law had already been set in motion by a God who shared His power with His creatures: what you do will affect those who come after you. Before the sweetness of the fruit had passed from her tongue to her stomach, she knew she'd lost her innocence, for she had eaten from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

By what appeared an insignificant act, she opened the door for all that was demonic and perverse to enter the realm of mankind. She might as well have said, “Welcome! Come wreak havoc among us,” to the enemy of God and man. She (and her husband, Adam, who ate the fruit, too) might as well have slammed the door of friendship in God's face.

There were consequences.

To know good and to know evil, you have to experience the outcome of both. Hence Adam and Eve were cast from the garden into the world twisted and inhabited by the Enemy. They knew good. Now they would know evil.

Since that time, have you ever noticed most of us are looking for paradise? We're surprised when things break apart, wear out or blow up. We're not supposed to get sick, we're not supposed to grow old, we're not supposed to die. We shouldn't have to endure hurricanes or earthquakes or floods. People shouldn't kill each other or abuse little children. It seems we have a primal, collective memory that this isn't the way life is supposed to be.

I agree. It's not. But is there no hope?

On the contrary, I believe there is tremendous hope. And most of you reading this do, too. I look forward to writing about that in the next blog.

Meanwhile, here's the hand and the apple that got me to thinking...

You can tell it was composed by a fallen human and not someone who was living in Eden!